If you like something…

Author Notes:My 8-year-old daughter Maddie and I love to make cookies together. We always sample the dough as we go, adding a little more sugar or vanilla (or something else), if needed. Because if the dough doesn't taste good, the cookies certainly won't. If you use very fresh free-range eggs (ours are from a farm down the road), then you don't have to worry about salmonella. If you'd rather not eat raw dough, though, trust that Maddie and I have tasted this one, and we think it's great. We love the chewy sugar cookies made from this dough, too, of course—they remind us of those packaged slice and bake ones, but they're better. And thanks to Merrill's mom for the tip about using the patterned bottom of a glass to create a pattern in the cookies :) —WinnieAb

Food52 Review: These super-chewy cookies have deep dark sugar flavor and rich vanilla notes. The recipe calls for one cup of brown sugar, which we thought imparted a distinct brown butter taste. Not your traditional sugar cookie, but a great play on a classic. - Emily —The Editors

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Serves 20 to 30 cookies

1
cup unsalted butter, softened

1
cup packed light brown sugar

1/2
cup white sugar

2
egg yolks

2
teaspoons vanilla extract

3
cups unbleached all-purpose flour

1/4
teaspoon baking powder

1/4
teaspoon fine sea salt

Preheat oven to 350° F.

In the bowl of a stand mixer (or by hand), cream the butter and the sugars. Add the egg yolks and the vanilla and mix well.

Combine the flour with the baking powder and the salt in a separate bowl. Add the dry ingredients to the wet ingredients and mix until well blended. [Editor's note: We added an additional egg yolk when we noticed the dough was crumbly.]

If you want to make rolled/cut-out cookies, you should wrap the dough in parchment or plastic and refrigerate until it is thoroughly chilled. You could also make a "log" out of the dough, freeze it, and then make "slice and bake" cookies. The third option (and what I usually do) is to shape the dough into balls, which you can flatten a bit with a metal spatula or the bottom of a glass (use a glass with a pattern and you'll end up with patterned cookies). Don't flatten them too much, because a bit of thickness helps them keep their shape/ensures they stay chewy, and place on parchment or silpat lined cookie sheets.

Bake for 12 to 15 minutes, or until slightly brown on the bottoms and around the edges. In my oven, this takes 14 minutes.

I'm not sure what everyone is talking about because these are probably some of the worst sugar cookies I've ever made. They were bland and crumbly I followed the recipe exactly so I don't know what the issue was but I had to add my own ingredients just to make them even roll into balls.

Hi, N. That must have been really frustrating. My guess is that your flour was too packed in the cup and as a result there was too much. This is one of those recipes where you really have to fluff up the flour before you measure it. With 3 cups of flour, the difference could be 1/2 cup or more. This has happened to me with other recipes, and I know how frustrating it can be.

These are outstanding! Thank you so much for sharing this with us, Winnie--it is a *keeper*. I made a batch for an 8th grade graduation party. I added an additional 1/2 tsp salt and refrigerated the dough over night. Formed balls and rolled in pink sanding sugar, slightly pressing down each. Baked for 14 min - no browning on the bottom (which I love) -- just perfect chewy deliciousness. Fantastic sugar cookie dough. As mentioned above, the brown sugar really gives a lovely, distinct flavor. Thanks again!